Volume 54 Number 1

The club’s annual officer installation and scholarship award dinner took place at the Mesa Lodge #68 on December 9, 2006. Approximately 80 members and guests attended this year-end function and all had a grand time!! The club provided barbecued pork and beef from Rudy’s plus cake for dessert and side dishes were provided potluck by attendees. Needless to say, there was an abundance (actually an over abundance) of food.

Grant Kuck brought some Christmas CD’s for background music and Mama’s Minerals, Southwest Minerals and The Turquoise Museum donated books, specimens and equipment as door prizes. Thank you Laura, Gary and Priscilla, and Joe Dan.

I introduced our new president, Suzanne Seymour to the group and then she and I presented two $1,000.00 checks to the 2006 scholarship winners.

The Earth & Planetary Sciences departments of the University of New Mexico (UNM) in Albuquerque and the New Mexico Institute of Mining & Technology (New Mexico Tech) in Socorro chose the 2006 winners. Johnna Blake (UNM) and Jason Andrews (New Mexico Tech) were the 2006 winners.

People drifted back and forth from after dinner conversations to the back room where our ‘white elephant’ silent auction was taking place throughout the evening. There was everything you can imagine being auctioned that night from minerals to cat toys and snow globes to a 30-year-old electric typewriter.

The silent auction closed around 8:30PM and everyone settled up with the treasurer and helped with the cleanup.

Thanks to everyone who volunteered and made the dinner a fun event. I have enjoyed being the club president for 2006 and I wish Suzanne the best of luck as our new president for 2007.

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Please send your membership renewal checks to Amy Penn c/o AGMC, PO Box 13718, Albuquerque, NM, 87192-3718

President: Suzanne Seymour

Home Phone: 877-3621

E-mail: suzannerox5@unm.edu

VP – Programs: Mike Sanders

Home Phone: 256-1794

E-mail: mesande@sandia.gov

Co-VP Programs: Marcus Price

Home Phone:

E-mail: priceabq@aol.com

VP – Field Trips: Grant Kuck

Home Phone: 323-1520

Co-VP – Field Trips: Rex Nelson

Home Phone: 271-4694

E-mail: sagebrushhome2@aol.com

Secretary:

Treasurer: Amy Penn

Home Phone: 883-4195

Email: el.chivo.Viejo@earthlink.net

Historian: Dave Moats

Home Phone: 892-8163

E-mail: beepbeep59@hotmail.com

Editor: Patricia Amschoff

Home Phone: 920-3299

E-mail: naturalstonelights@yahoo.com

Show Chair: Paul Hlava

Home Phone: 255-5478

E-mail: hpf5@qwest.net

Past President: Orlando Garcia

Home Phone: 345-0520

E-mail: jabog02@msn.com

The Club Newsletter: News Nuggets exists to assist the membership in communications and to provide information on club activities. Contributions from all members are welcome on any information that will promote club activities or that would be of interest to club members. News Nuggets is scheduled to be mailed approximately one week prior to the monthly meeting. Mail news, articles or comments to: Patricia Amschoff, Editor, 83 Placita de Oro, Apt. 6, Santa Fe, NM 87501, or e-mail at natural stone lights@yahoo.com.

The Albuquerque Gem & Mineral Club was organized on January 22, 1944. The club is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and enjoyment of the Earth Sciences and associated subjects. Its primary purpose is the exchange of information and the furtherance of knowledge of Mineralogy, Fossils, Geology, Rock Cutting and Gem Faceting and to stimulate interest in the development of these studies.

All meetings are held at the NM Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM. The general meeting is held on the 4^th Monday of the month (unless otherwise announced) at 7:30 p.m. The Junior Club meets at 6:30 p.m. prior to the general meeting. Board of Directors meetings are held at 7:30 p.m. on the first Monday of each month. (Call for location.) The public is welcome at both meetings.

Being a member of the Albuquerque Gem & Mineral Club does not make you an official of the AGMC. This makes it inappropriate for any member to take on any responsibility or authority for any club activity without explicit instruction from the AGMC Board of Directors.

Orlando called the October AGMC club meeting to order at 7:40pm. He issued a warm welcome to all in attendance including the newly joined, visitors and guests. Among the number were a new referral from Gary Young at SW Minerals and some who had located us at our website. Orlando talked up the upcoming Symposium held annually at NM Tech and noted that registration could be accomplished online. He hopes that many will take advantage of this opportunity to advance their knowledge and enjoyment of the state of the state’s new discoveries and papers on all things mineralogical. Jeff Nekola announced upcoming field trips. The first one , to be held October 30^th will be to the Small Fry. This site is where an old extinct hot spring emerged through the Santa Fe Formation . Collectables include violet colored botryoidal fluorite, and nice calcites. A classic zeolite locality is also located on the way. The group will meet at the bar/store parking lot on US 84 just east of where NM 554 drops down from El Rito. 9:00am. The other field trip the guys have lined up is the wildly popular Blanchard Claims trip slated for Nov. 18^th at 9:30am. The group will meet in Bingham on US 380 30 mi east of I-25 next to the rock shop there. Ray DeMark, our host, advised the club that underground tours will be limited this year to those who have not been in the mine before so flashlights and hard hats won’t be necessary for everyone. Further news from the field---John Reinert lost his new glasses at the Sec. 21, did anyone pick them up by chance?

Orlando took the floor again and reminded the club members that we are sponsors of the silent auction held at the end of the Symposium in Socorro, the proceeds of which go to fund the Mineral Museum on campus there, and to solicit donations of fine specimens to put together an AGMC club table of items for bid.

Gwen Poe asked that the candidates for the officers running for election to serve in 2007 be announced. They were and each present stood in turn for recognition and to receive grateful applause in acknowledgement of their commitment to run. And once again she is spearheading the Xmas party planning. She will need help to decorate tables and organize the scene for the victuals the club provides.[Rudy’s BBQ, drinks and dessert] and prepare for the onslaught of delicacies that we all bring to share. (And this is a job, I think last year the spread covered 50 square feet!!!) The party will be at the Masonic Center again with its room for white elephants to mingle with assorted creations and the recently liberated lithics at the Silent Night Auction Event. Saturday Dec. 9^th has been reserved at the lodge on Alcazar NE for the affair that also includes the bestowal of the 2006 Scholarship Awards as well as the installation of officers for 2007. Helpers should arrive at 5:00, partygoers at 6:00. The Masonic Lodge is located one-half block south of Lomas, one blk E. of Louisiana behind the Cooperage.

Jan Burroughs and Tom Baker have purchased a copy of the rhodocrosite video and offered to lend it out to anyone who asks for it.

Paul Hlava gave a Show Committee report. Things proceed apace, and a food vendor has been secured for the event. He also handed out postcards for the Agate Show being held Nov. 4-5 in town. Jay Penn is mounting the effort to make the Junior Table and other kid friendly events at the show a success. He’s now ready to begin assembling the specimens and stuff, and this is great news. Anyone with flats of material left over from last year is encouraged to get in touch with him.

Paul and Jay’s Show Committee reporting was the last of the business for the night so club Member Mike Potts was introduced to present the program on fluorescent minerals. This was a great program with something for all skill stages of collecting and even featured cameos from other expert club members. Besides specifics on famous and local mines, listing the various types of minerals and their typical fluorescent color, he relayed insider information on ways to get more enjoyment out of your collection. He brought along a stereo microscope that he set up and coached lookers on the proper use of during the break, and relayed the value of a loupe for all collectors. Mike reminded members that the club owns and lets out to members a rock trimmer that can be used to separate the good stuff from larger material collected in the field. He had along the "Gemstone and Mineral Data Book" by Sinkankas that he’s used to get info on cleaning and preparing specimens. Photographing specimens is another great way to really see your specimens and share them. Grant provided amusing commentary on the slide portion of the show that illustrated the "Photo Studio in a Box", a unit that unfolds to surround ones specimens with a diffuser type screen to allow for better quality photo images from your equipment.

And yes he did talk about fluorescent minerals…a phenomenon he discovered one evening during a yard walk with a black light. [It was a comfort to me at least to know that I’m not the only one who hauls home stuff too cool to be "leaverite" but not cool enough to rate a place on the mantle]. Aragonite, willemite, and a septarian nodule were steadily gazing at him in gorgeous fluorescent colors. Calcite from the Red Cloud mine glowed red and the fluorite from there glowed purple. Calcite that glows red is also known from the Dictator mine, and wollastanite from the Peloncillos fluoresces as well. During this portion of the program Paul Hlava made a cameo appearance to explain how the magic of fluorescence comes about. Rightly suspecting that this explanation was going to involve physics I prepared to shut down [girls just wanna have fun] and dream of amusing high carat baubles that might one day grace my person, but I didn’t, I stayed tuned in and as things turned out it wasn’t so impossible to understand after all. Paul started with a primer on the energy spectrum. Visible light, the light we can see, occurs between 400 and 700 nanometers. Each color has a wave length, a frequency, and specific energy quanta associated with it. The shorter the wavelength the higher the energy emitted .Ultraviolet light emits short and long wave radiation from 250 up to 400 which is the low end of the visible. Because they emit higher energy they can "lend" energy to electrons in an atoms shell exciting them to adopt higher energy, less stable orbits. Excitable electrons can only absorb specific energy bands, and relaxation doesn’t completely cancel the absorption of color. When this energy input is shut off the electrons return to their regular old orbits releasing some of the extra input as heat, and some as light. When the energy emitted matches a position on the emission spectrum at a site in the visible range the color associated with this position glows. This is fluorescence. A couple of other things to keep in mind about light and color are the following tidbits: White light as we perceive it is composed of a mixture of all the colors, and when a specific color is removed its’ compliment remains. More about why this matters later. Not all minerals fluoresce. Some always do, some will fluoresce in a range of different colors. Why this is has been the subject of much scientific study. Some 15 or more possible "activators" have been identified as causal agents. Some elements are intrinsically fluorescent .Ions of uranium, tungsten, molybedenum, boron, lead, and titanium when included in the chemical formula of a mineral species are known intrinsic activators. In other cases the inclusion of transition metal impurities such as chromium or manganese in the solid state expression, or crystal lattice, of the chemical formula foster sites for activation. The inclusion of manganese in calcite crystals is responsible for the vivid red fluorescence of calcites from the Red Cloud, the Dictator, and many other southwestern mines. Collectable statewide is scheelite CaWO4. The activator here is the tungsten which imparts a celestial blue. At the same activation site the substitution of molybedenum creates powellite CaMO4 that shifts the color to whitish and pale yellow. So many colors glowing in our backyards just waiting for a little energy. Get the light, and get this book "Ultraviolet Light and Fluorescent Minerals" by Warren/Gleason, get out there and get the neon party started.

Mike brought all the gear for demonstrations and tons of take home samples for us, too. This all member assisted show was really good fun and buzzed up the crowd considerably. You guys were radiant!!! Thanks, Mike, for sharing all the possibilities with us.

Todd and Patricia Brown fueled the social hour that lasted through the Door Prize Event.

Suzanne Seymour, 2006 secretary

President Orlando Garcia called the November club meeting to order at 7:35. Following a warm welcome several guests and potential new members stood to introduce themselves. Among the many were a limestone quarry owner, life long collectors new to the area, a fossil hunter, and a couple of families. Candidates for the 2007 Board of Directors stood to be announced and because all were running unopposed a near unanimous show of hands of all who supported them was all the voting formality required. The Board is as follows: Suzanne Seymour/President, Mike Sanders, Marcus Price/Co-VP Programs, Rex Nelson and Grant Kuck/Co-VP Field Trips, Amy Penn/Treasurer, Patricia Amschoff/Editor, Kimberly Richie/Memberships, Show Chair/Paul Hlava. Jeff reported on the success of the Blanchard trip, and thanked Ray DeMark for hosting our club again this year. He pointed out the collecting box where specimens of Zuni fluorite are being solicited for the club members whose stash disappeared during our field trip to the Sec. 21 mine. Rex and Grant are already on the job for next year!!! Rex announced the location of January’s field trip. We’re headed south to the Nakaye Mine where recent finds are large showy fluorites and nice bladed showy dark barite. Maps to the location are available. Kathy Lawicki needs to begin filling the refreshment schedule so get with her and select the month that’s convenient for you. She also relayed that Herb Traulsons’ widow, Marie, turned 90 and would enjoy hearing from members. She has no family locally and might need an escort to the Xmas party. Paul Hlava gave a report on the progress of the Treasures of the Earth Show. The theme for our annual March show is "Turquoise". Particulars are on the flyer, so be sure to grab a handful to pass around. He has been getting lots of money from dealers reserving space. Following the business portion Mike Sanders introduced Patricia McCraw, author of the book "Tiffany Blue", an intriguing account of the 19^th century turquoise mining situation around Cerrillos, New Mexico. Patricia had brought actual material and copies of documents relating to the industry, and it is from this and meticulous records kept by her great grandfather John P. McNulty [and written in pencil on Big Chief tablets] that her book was written. This particular chapter of the turquoise mining history that dates back into prehistory is attributed to a proclamation by world renowned gemologist George F Kunz [coincidentally in the employ of Lewis Comfort Tiffany] that the perfect sky blue of the material from around Cerrillos elevated turquoise to gem quality. Mining by the newly organized American Turquoise Mining Co. began in earnest in 1892 with the arrival of John P. McNulty who served as the first and only superintendent of the mining site some 4 miles from Mt. Chalchihuitl. The mission of these particular mines was of course to produce stones without matrix of "the blue" sought by investors L.C. Tiffany, James Stillman, and Allen Pinkerton [yes, that Pinkerton family]. In 1899 upon garnering awards at a show in Paris the Tiffany Co. declared their stones the perfect blue…Tiffany Blue. In service of the American Turquoise Co. McNulty weathered a rattlesnake bite, gun toting claim jumpers, crew hit by lightning, and the general hardships of frontier living. Mining methods typical of the time produced material that was scrupulously hand sorted for quality and that created large dumps of lesser quality material. Twentieth century owners sold this dump material to the highway department who used it to pave a road , dubbed "The Million Dollar Highway", though a successful subsequent lawsuit by Tiffany Co. mandated its return. In addition to historical anecdotes she shared some facts about turquoise. Turquoise is found within 60’ of the surface with maximum depth of about 270 feet. DNA analysis is now being done on turquoise. The claims that comprised the mines are unavailable to collectors due to their having been backfilled some 10 years or so ago as being hazardous to livestock and people. Thanks Patricia for sharing some highlights of this fascinating regional history, and for donating one of the books to our Door Prize event.

Thanks also to Dave and Karen Moats for feeding the ravenous crowd with a fine selection of goodies.

Additional thanks and kudos to Mr. Moats for another awesome Door Prize Extravaganza!

Suzanne Seymour, 2006 Secretary

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January Meeting -"Show and Tell"

Or show and ask? What’d you get for Xmas [surely not coal in your stockings]? A book? BLING !!!? Maybe you have a group of things you’ve collected on one of the field trips? Or bring in stuff you need help in identifying we’ll make some take-home labels to keep with your specimens. Suzanne said she will bring in some "theme collection" examples that have been given to the Juniors.

You can enter specimens in a display case at our March show. Start deciding on or collecting some rocks you'd like to enter. There will be an award for the best display. The February 26th Junior Club meeting will be on how to present your specimens in the display. You can get rocks identified by club members if you bring them in.

Another chance to enter a specimen is at the Rocky Mountain Federation show June 7 - 10 in Roswell, NM at the Convention & Civic Center. This show is very small, but if you're in the area or have a relative living nearby, you may want to enter.

The rules are:

1. The specimens must be collected by the junior.

2. He/she must prepare it for exhibit.

3. He/she must make a label with the name of the material and where it was found.

4. The junior must get the specimen to the show. The junior does not have to be present at the

show. Any club member can bring the entry.

5. The junior must fill out the registration form and send it in to the Junior Chairman prior to the

show.

The winning junior up to age 12 will win $25.00, a certificate and some other goodies.

The winning junior age 13 - 17 will win $25.00, a certificate and some other goodies.

Diane Weir, 2300 S. Union Ave, Roswell, NM 88203, dcweir@dfn.com, 505-622-5679

Well, this is the first month of my being your president – I wish us both good luck!

Our first board meeting of 2007 was held on January 8 and it went well.

Thank you to Judy DeMark for agreeing to be acting bulletin editor for the months of January and February until our new editor is able to take over.

Our board of directors is in place but I would like to put out a call for a junior club coordinator. It is a very rewarding experience, I can tell you! And don’t forget, we still need a club secretary!

Suzanne Seymour, AGMC President

PRESIDENT: Suzanne Seymour

VP PROGRAMS: Mike Sanders

Marcus Price

VP FIELD TRIPS: Grant Kuck

Rex Nelson

TREASURER: Amy Penn

MEMBERSHIP: Kimberly Richie

EDITOR: Patricia Amschoff

HISTORIAN: Dave Moats

SHOW CHAIR: Paul Hlava

Through Jan. 31, Laughlin, NV - Clouds Jamboree. 6th Annual International Rock, Gem, Jewelry, Arts/Crafts, and Mineral Show. Avi Resort & Casino. 866-558-7719

Here are a few of the retail shows in Tucson in February. For more show listings consult lapidaryjournal.com

Jan. 27-Feb. 10, Tucson, AZ - Arizona Mineral & Fossil Show. Ramada Limited, 665 N. Freeway Ave. Martin Zinn Expositions

Jan. 27-Feb. 10, Tucson, AZ - Executive Inn Mineral & Fossil Show. Best Western Executive Inn, 333 W. Drachman St

Jan. 27-Feb. 11, Tucson, AZ - Tucson Electric Park Gem & Mineral Show. Tucson Electric Park, 2500 E. Ajo Way.

Tucson Gem & Mineral Show

Tucson Convention Center, 260 S. Church St.

Mar. 8-11, Deming, NM - Deming Gem & Mineral Society, Inc. 42nd Annual Rockhound Roundup. S.W. New Mexico Fairgrounds. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily

Mar. 16-18, Albuquerque, NM - Albuquerque Gem & Mineral Club. 38th Annual Treasures of the Earth Show. New Mexico Expo Fairgrounds, School Art Bldg. 16th-17th, 10-6; 18th, 10-5 agmc.info

Before I begin this year’s MM I want to know if any of you are still playing this game. Email me at hpf5@qwest.net and let me know. This includes AGMC members and everyone else who reads the "News Nuggets". If no one responds I will stop wasting space on the newsletter.

The Game Plan – I will describe a mineral and you have to guess/decipher/research the name of the mineral and the answers to the other questions asked about uses, history, notable facts, etc. I expect the Top Guns in the club to be able to guess the name off the top of their heads. The learners will need a reference book or two. You will benefit most if you do not ask others for the answers but work it out for yourselves. When you have decided on the name you can compare notes with others or wait for the answers to be announced at the meetings or published in the News Nuggets. Good luck and have fun.

Last year I discussed minerals that are named for geographic localities. This year I thought I’d concentrate on minerals named for some physical property that they possess.

This month’s MM is a common, monoclinic silicate of common elements that is found in metamorphic rocks. It can be bladed, fibrous, and/or radial or spray-like. This mineral has perfect cleavage at about 60 degrees and a brittle, splintery fracture, vitreous to silky luster, hardness of 5.5, and specific gravity of 2.98-3.1. Transparent to translucent, color is green, green-black, grayish-green, to black.

What is the name of the mineral?

What is the origin of the name?

What is the name of the white analog?

What is the name of the pink analog?

What makes it pink?

(OK. What makes the regular stuff green to black?)

What is it used for?

What is the name of the semi-precious gemstone composed of this mineral?

Name a NM locality. –

Name some other US localities. –

Name some world-wide, world-class specimen localities.

What is the name of the mineral? Hafnon

What is the origin of the name? Named for hafnium which is chemically almost identical to zirconium. BTW – hafnium is named for Hafnia – which means Copenhagen!)

Why the strange name ending? To agree with zircon.

What is it used for? Alloying agent in Fe, Ti, Nb, and other alloys, control rods in nuclear reactors, oxygen getter in gas filled and incandescent light bulbs.

How was the very heavy element in it discovered? By its x-ray spectrum.

Why did I bother you with this mineral? Because the zircons in the Harding pegmatite have zones rich in HfO₂. Some go as high as 20 %. Because most Zr minerals only have 1% to 3 % HfO₂, that is very unusual.

Name a NM locality. – none Hf dominant

Name some other US localities. – Ray Mica Mine in NC

Name some world-wide localities. – Mozambique (4 TL’s, Canada, Zimbabwe

Paul Hlava

Our next field trip is scheduled for Saturday, February 24^th. The destination is the NMBGMR Mineral Museum at Socorro’s New Mexico Tech. (directions below).

The gathering point is the parking lot at Tech’s Macy Center on Olive Lane. We will assemble around 9:00 a.m. and proceed on foot to the museum at 9:30 a.m.

A guided tour is possible, but, in any case, we will be afforded the opportunity to view a collection of over 15,000 mineral specimens. In addition to a top quality collection of Southwest minerals, many other world class pieces are on display. Mining memorabilia, fossils, and a uv-mineral exhibit are also available for viewing. Many wonderful specimens are for sale, so bring plenty of cash and your checkbook. Your purchases will help fund new acquisitions.

At a convenient time around noon, we will break for lunch. If weather permits, those who so desire will proceed for a short local collecting trip. This location will likely be in the Chupadera Mountains or the Tower (Nancy) mine.

Proceed on I-25 South to Exit 150 at Socorro. This exit turns into California Street. Continue South to Bullock Blvd and turn right. Continue West on Bullock past Camino Real and Leroy Place. Bullock Blvd changes to Olive Lane and curves to the left. The Macy Center will be on the right. Park at the (South) far end of the Macy Center parking lot.

See you there - and don’t forget some collecting equipment.

Grant and Rex

Do you know who is considered the first modern geologist?

That would be James Hutton who in 1785 presented a paper titled "Theory of the Earth" to the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In the paper, he discussed his theory that the Earth was older than previously thought in order to allow time for erosion of the mountains and sedimention for new rocks, which were raised from the sea to become dry land.

But it was Shen Kua (1031-1095) in China who had formulated an earlier hypothesis of land formation based on his observation of fossil shells.

From Wickipedia – submitted by Judy DeMark

Howdy Folks. Before Halloween I sent out the first round of contracts to all of the dealers from last year who said they wanted to be back and some former dealers to fill in a couple of known holes. I have gotten responses back from almost all of them. The response deadline for the first round of offers was December 10^th. Since then, I’ve been contacting dealers on my back-up list and it has been first come, first served. There are a bunch of outfits on that list and I still get calls from more several times a week. If you know of likely MINERAL/ROCK/FOSSIL dealers, let me know. I can easily get lots of bead, jewelry, etc. folks. At this time (Jan. 14) I have one big booth and some smaller ones available, so I’m looking for folks who want the smaller booths. (1, 2, or 3 tables.)

One of the touchstones of a good show is how well our dealers did last year. And as I mentioned before, ours did from FANTASTIC! to dismal. Most of dealers did well or better. I guess the word is getting around that the Treasures of the Earth show is a good one because I’ve had new dealers asking for space from coast to coast. To prove that point, this year we will have new dealers from North Carolina, Texas, and California. That is in addition to our returning dealers from ABQ and the rest of the state plus AZ, CO, and AR. (Everyone who helped at the show this year should now pat yourselves on the back for putting on such a fine show.)

Publicity for the show is underway. Judy DeMark has contacted a list of mineral and gem magazines that have show calendars so you should see these notices soon. Of course, we have thousands of GARISH (on purpose) yellow flyers for everyone to hand out. Postcard designing will start soon and be available after the holidays. Radio, TV, and newspaper ads will be done right before the show.

Once again I will plead for more people to get involved with the show committee. Apropos of that, I plan to have sign up sheets at the January meeting for a number of jobs to be handled. These include set-up, tear-down, and overnight security. I’m sure that Kimberley Richie and Hank Miller will be passing sheets around also.

Contact me if you want to help more. 255-5478, hpf5@qwest.net.

Paul Hlava, Chairman of the Treasures of the Earth – 2007 Show

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